1 . Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an overhead image reading apparatus.
2 . Description of the Related Art
An overhead image reading apparatus that reads a medium to be read from above in the vertical direction has been known in related art. With such an overhead image reading apparatus, the distance between a light source and a surface of the original is long, which requires a high light intensity or brightness enough to read an image. For this reason, some overhead image reading apparatuses in the related art prevent the user from being dazzled by the irradiation light having a high intensity. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2001-28671 discloses an image reading apparatus using a light beam like one emitted through a slit, hereinafter referred to as a slit-light beam, as light to irradiate the original to reduce the dazzle by irradiating a surface of the original with the slit-light beam.
However, with an apparatus such as an overhead image reading apparatus having the light source, the user can see the light source with his/her eyes when the light source is arranged in the line of sight of the user using the apparatus. In this case, the user may feel uncomfortable because light from the light source directly gets in the user's eyes.